Acquaintance
by CallMeClandestine
Summary: It all starts on her birthday. Tenten learns that bonds as strong as theirs do not break. They may fray and stretch and unravel, but they can always be put back together. It just takes work. NejiTen friendship.
1. March 9th

Look, I posted something! It's only been...a very long time. I decided that I would try my hand at a NejiTen friendship fic. AND, in the future (aka. in a very long time, if ever) I might add more chaps to this, but as of now this fic is complete since I only have vague ideas swirling around in my head.

**Disclaimer:** I own a Naruto t-shirt. That's right, be jealous. (Idon'townnarutoblah).

* * *

**Acquaintance**

_1. March 9th_

She would like to know when, and how, they grew so far apart. At twenty one she found it hard to believe that Neji was no longer something constant in her life, like she had expected him to be when she was younger. They were by no means enemies, but were not exactly friends (in her book, at least). Acquaintances, the dreadful word reserved for those you are unfamiliar with, distant from.

"Neji and I are kind of just…acquaintances." She said it with a shrug, eyes downcast, focusing on the grains of the wooden table her elbows were propped against.

"But since _when_? You guys used to be like this," Sakura asked, and twisted two fingers together to demonstrate her point. Tenten glanced up to give her a dubious look.

"Okay, well, maybe not like _this_," Sakura amended, untwisting her fingers. "But you two were definitely close, closer than you are now, that's for sure."

"Yeah, well, what can I say?"

"…What happened?"

Tenten shrugged again and looked back down at the table, where her finger was tracing a fine groove in the wood. "I guess time and work and everything else got in the way. We _are_ both jounins now, and we aren't always on the same teams for missions, and one of us is always busy when the other's not."

"Hmm…" Sakura hummed in agreement, pushing a few stray strands of pastel pink hair behind her ears. "That's so sad."

"We've grown up, that's all. Ninjas are always taught about the hindrances of friendship and how such relationships are pointless. Life always gets in the way, in the end."

Sakura frowned. "Yeah, but still…It's not like people actually care about that stupid saying. I have friends, you have friends, hell, even _Sasuke_ has Naruto."

"And you."

"And Neji had _you_."

Tenten glanced up through her bangs, grown out as the years had passed and swept over from one side. "But not in that way."

The pinkette was grinning now, jade eyes sparkling; Tenten wondered why she seemed so pleased with herself. "Jeez Ten, chill. You'll get premature wrinkles." She reached out and poked Tenten between the eyebrows; the place always creased when she thought hard or was attempting to look defiant.

"Oh no, my one true fear. I've been found out," Tenten said in a monotone, rolling her auburn eyes. Sakura flicked her between the eyes. "Ow! What was that for?"

"_That_ was because you're being lame."

"What? But how?" Tenten pouted, and rested her chin in her arms. She blew absently at her bangs, paying little attention to Sakura ("You don't seem quite as upset about your whole 'Neji situation' as you should be") until the younger girl stood up quickly.

"Shoot, I totally spaced. My shift starts…three minutes ago!"

"Oh wow, think you can make it back in time?" Tenten asked sarcastically.

Sakura tore her gaze away from the clock mounted on the wall above the diner's door. "Maybe before Tsunade-sama notices, at least. Sorry, Tenten!" She threw some money down on the table - enough to pay for her coffee – and headed towards the door, but twisted around suddenly. "Oh, and if I don't have time to see you tomorrow, happy birthday in advance!"

"Ugh, don't remind me."

"Just be happy I let you convince me not to throw you a huge party. And remember what I said about those wrinkles!" she sang over her shoulder, one hand up in a wave as she slipped through the door and down the street.

Tenten let her face fall the rest of the way into the nest her arms had made. "I feel so _old_," she moaned to no one in particular, unaware of the strange glances she was getting from a waitress who was trying to decide whether or not to ask if Tenten needed a refill of her water.

* * *

Her (very calculated, incredibly genius) plan had been to completely avoid her apartment for the entire day. She knew there would most likely be a sizeable pile of gifts waiting for her when she returned, but she was happy to avoid the happy birthday wishers that came with the presents. She didn't enjoy having people remind her that she was twenty two.

She felt as if her teenage years had swept past her without leaving any lasting impressions. They were gone, through, and that was that. And what had she achieved? Besides becoming a chuunin, then jounin, she wasn't exactly sure. Had she left any lasting impressions, made a _difference_? She didn't feel as though she had.

"Ugh," she sighed heavily, slouching over on the smooth boulder she was sitting on. Her head fell into her hands heavily and she rubbed her eyes tiredly. It was getting late.

"What's wrong?"

She jumped at the smooth, controlled voice coming from behind her. She knew exactly who it was.

"Oh, Neji, hi," she said uncertainly, looking at him over her shoulder. She felt her eyebrows furrow as she questioned his presence silently.

"Hi," he echoed simply, and then added a "happy birthday."

"Oh, um, thank you Neji, that's really nice of you."

He nodded silently but did no more, and Tenten didn't know if she should speak or just let him stand there until he decided to break the silence himself. Finally, when she was sure that she was visible fidgeting because of the awkwardness, she spoke.

"So…why exactly are you here?"

Neji raised an eyebrow. "Besides wishing you a happy birthday?" He sounded slightly amused.

"Oh, yeah, right…" She looked off to the side, embarrassed.

A quiet rustling reached her ears, and then Neji's voice split the silence. "Actually, I got you something, as well."

Tenten's eyes immediately swiveled to the square box in his hands, slightly smaller than the size of a book. "You did?" she asked, astonished at the motion. Out of all the people she knew, the person she least expected to receive a present from was Neji. He just didn't seem like the gift-giving type.

"I did."

The shock must have been apparent on her face as Neji walked up to her, because as he handed her the gift he asked, "Why is that so surprising?"

Tenten looked at the present as she shrugged her shoulders. "I dunno," she murmured as she traced the ribbon with her index finger. "Can I open it?"

"No, never."

Tenten looked up with a puzzled expression. Neji sighed. "It was a joke."

"When did _you_ get a sense of humor?" Tenten scowled.

"When did _you_ lose yours?"

Ouch. Tenten's scowl turned into a frown. Neji sighed again, but said gently, "Open it."

With nimble fingers, Tenten untied the bow and lifted the lid off of the box. Then she gasped.

"Neji! Are you serious? You remembered?!"

Neji chuckled quietly and sat on the edge of the rock on Tenten's left. "How could I not? What shinobi in their right mind has to contemplate buying kunai over origami paper, and then ends up buying neither?"

Tenten laughed, all earlier unease forgotten. "Yeah, and then you told me that I was being stupid and that the practical choice was to get the kunai. _'What are you going to do with the paper? Give enemies paper cuts?'_" Tenten mimicked in a poor imitation of Neji's voice. "But that was over a year ago," she added.

"I tend not to forget things."

"…Thanks, Neji," Tenten said with a warm smile. "But…I don't know how to use this stuff."

"I figured as much. I can teach you sometime, if you want. Hinata taught me. It's better with more light, though."

"Mm, okay, that sounds like fun. But why did you get the origami paper and not the weapons?"

"It just seemed like the right decision."

"Ah, I see."

Tenten smiled wistfully, staring out into the edge of the forest but not seeing anything. Her thoughts were on the past, on her old team and how they were never apart, on Neji and the comfortable friendship they shared (and maybe still did, a little bit).

"What are you thinking about?" Neji asked suddenly. Tenten felt his eyes on her face.

"Nothing. Just…remembering."

"You don't seem happy."

She turned to him. His lips were turned down slightly at the corners. "What do you mean?"

"Whenever I see you now, you look troubled, like something is always on your mind," he clarified. "You seem…" he paused to think of the word, and finally settled on, "distracted."

Tenten looked back down at her hands curled loosely around the box. "I feel unaccomplished," she deadpanned, not one for beating around the bush. "I feel like everyone's done something to stand out, but then there's me, and I kind of fade into the background. I feel like a wallflower. I just-"

She sighed heavily and bit her lip.

"You just what?" Neji urged.

"No, it's nothing. I'll stop whining."

"You underestimate yourself."

"Mm." She didn't sound convinced, but she knew that Neji was trying to make her feel better. "I'm guessing that you already know this, but I really miss you."

"Miss me, as in at this moment, you are still missing me?"

"It's…hard to explain." She looked him in the eyes. "Don't you feel like we've kinda…drifted apart, you and me? I never talk to you anymore, Neji. It's like I've slowly lost my best friend," she finished, her voice getting lower with each word.

"_Best_ friend?" Neji asked, the ghost of a smile on his lips.

Tenten nudged his shoulder. "You already knew _that_." She rolled her eyes, but quickly became somber again. "But don't you understand where I'm coming from?"

"I understand that we don't have as much time to be around each other because of our duties, but that doesn't mean that our friendship has to suffer, does it?"

"I dunno, does it?"

Neji shook his head. "No, I don't think so. You're still Tenten and I'm still Neji, and we're still able to sit on this rock and have conversations like we used to."

"That reminds me!" Tenten interjected suddenly. "How did you know where to look for me? I've been trying to avoid everybody."

"I guessed," Neji said simply, but the smirk on his face told Tenten that he must have known all along where she would be hiding, which was very typical of him.

"Some things never change," she sighed.

"My point exactly."

"…Thanks, Neji."

He furrowed his eyebrows. "For what?"

Tenten grimaced. "Just thanks."

"For the present? Or…oh. This is one of those 'Thanks, Neji, _for everything'_ thank you-s, isn't it?"

"You're ruining a very heartfelt moment," Tenten said through gritted teeth. "You know how I don't do heartfelt moments. You just killed this one. And stop smirking!"

A single, sharp laugh escaped Neji's throat. "Some things never change."

Tenten tried, and failed, to hold back the smile fighting its way onto her face as she punched him in the shoulder.


	2. July 3rd

Thank you to those who reviewed the first chapter! And an even bigger thanks to those who alerted, because I had only promised a possible continuation; I didn't even know for sure if I wanted to add to this or not. But alas, I've thought of a loose plot (because I never know exactly what I'm going to write until I actually write it), so I've come up with a chapter two to this fic! And I kind of know where I want to go with this. I'm sorry that it took so long to continue this, for those of you who waited. I try to fit writing into my schedule, but it's not that easy (and I'm crazy and start more fics than I can handle at a time). So thank you for your patience.

Basically, with this fic, I want to write a NejiTen piece that isn't all about romance and unsure feelings and all that confusing, stressful stuff. I'm one of those people who doesn't believe that just because a guy and a girl (or guy + guy or girl + girl) like Neji and Tenten are really close, that they MUST be in love with each other. Don't get me wrong, I ADORE NejiTen, but there's something fulfulling about writing them being just friends. So this fic came into existence. I think I can stop babbling now... You get the picture. XD

* * *

**Acquaintance**

_2. July 3rd_

She had been practicing. Not often, but often enough, when time would permit it. A fold before an early morning mission briefing, a crease in the spare minutes between returning home and leaving again for whatever called her. She had improved, little by little, and soon she was making _animals_ and _flowers_ instead of just _things_ and _shapes_.

She never had gotten Neji to teach her how to fold origami. She had used her brain and her ingenuity and imagination (and a book she had borrowed from Hinata) to figure out the process. It made her feel more accomplished.

She knew what she wanted to make him. His birthday was nearing, and she knew what to make him. His present had to be origami, she reasoned, because it just did. It made sense: he had gotten her origami for her birthday; she would make him something from this origami for _his_ birthday.

It was _meaningful_.

And his present had to _mean_ something. He was Neji, her once-and-kind-of-still best friend. The boy who had trained her to pass her chuunin exam, because everyone knew he was going to pass that time after his initial failure, but no one had paid her much attention. The man who had told her that she wasn't worthless, and had proved that although it didn't seem it, he was still there for her when she needed him.

She smiled faintly, fingers working with the thin paper. She knew exactly what to make, and her face was set in determination as the lamp glowed over the pages of the book in front of her.

A cricket chirped from somewhere outside in the dark, and she let out a jaw-cracking yawn. She made the mistake of trying to fold a crease whilst her eyes were still watery, and once she wiped the tears away, she cursed. "Dammit, this won't work."

The crease wasn't perfect, wasn't straight down the middle. She swiped the paper off the table, pulled out another – the same burnt orange color – and set to work again from step one.

"Fifth time's the charm," she muttered tiredly, realizing too late that it probably wasn't the best idea to wait until the night before his birthday to actually start his present.

At least she had the steps memorized by now.

* * *

"You sure as hell'd better appreciate this," she said, a bit stiffly, as she stuffed the small box into Neji's hands the next morning. "Oh yeah, happy birthday. I guess I should say that."

"You look tired," Neji observed after recovering from his initial shock, looking at her face and the shadowy circles under her eyes.

Tenten waved a hand dismissively. "Oh, don't worry. I'm only exhausted."

"Only?" Neji repeated, noting her sarcasm. "Why are you so exhausted?"

"I was working on _your_ present all night. There's a good lesson, though, that came out of this. Neji, don't ever put off getting someone their birthday present until a few hours before their birthday. You'll regret it."

He raised his eyebrows, about to ask her why she was telling _him_ this, because as far as he remembered, he hadn't been at all sleep deprived as he had given her her present a few months earlier.

"I'm not saying I regret making you a present!" Tenten added quickly, preventing Neji from speaking. "I'm just saying, sleep is good. It keeps you healthy. If I die a premature death anytime soon, I'm blaming it on you."

Neji's eyes softened and a slight smile touched his face. "Thank you, Tenten."

She looked surprised for a second. "For what, blaming you if I die? That's kinda – oh, wait, got it. _God_ I'm tired." She ran a hand over her face and sighed, and then gave him a weary smile. "You're welcome. Happy birthday. Don't open it now, wait until later. I don't want you to crush it or anything. I think I'd probably kill you, and then I'd blame you for your death."

"I appreciate that very much."

She exhaled a laugh through her nose. "Good. Ugh, I should get going. I've got a lot to do today." She didn't move as if to leave, however. Instead, she gazed blankly out towards something at her right, and she blinked her eyes forcefully, feeling them sting as they shut.

She had accosted him in the middle of the street, and people had to weave around them to get by. No one really seemed to mind, or notice them for that matter; they might as well have been two stone statues, two stone statues that happened to move. The crowds buzzed with voices from all around them, but the sounds seemed far away to her ears. She was so tired, and she wasn't sure she could get her legs to move if she tried.

"You're overworking yourself."

She gave him a dazed look, and then seemed to return to herself with a start. "No no, I'm fine!" she said, shaking her hands out in front of her haphazardly. "You know, just this and that, and work and stuff. I've got a meeting with Tsunade later," she added, almost as an afterthought.

"A meeting about what?"

At this she grinned. "You'll find out when you open your present!" she said brightly. "But really, I should get going. I'll see you around," she said, and gave him a quick hug ("Only because it's your birthday. I'm allowed to, today.") before punching him in the arm. She was proud to see that he forced back a wince.

"Don't tell me you're getting weak, Neji!" she laughed as she turned and began to walk away (her legs would still follow her commands, she was glad to find). "We need to spar sometime, so that I can toughen your skin again. And you'd better appreciate your gift!" she called over her shoulder. When she peered back to see his response, he was already gone, off to comply with whatever busy schedule he had for himself.

She rolled her eyes, a smile touching her lips. "Whatever," she muttered, and lost herself in the crowd.

* * *

He opened the box when he was alone in his room later than evening. The first thing he saw when he pulled off the lid was a folded slip of paper, which he took out. He unfolded it, and was surprised by the amount of writing he saw on it: it was filled from top to bottom in Tenten's not-quite-neat, not-quite-messy scrawl.

Beneath where the letter had been in the box lay another piece of paper; origami paper, he noticed, after turning the lamp to better light the desk. Origami paper he had given her, but this piece had been artfully manipulated into…

His brow wrinkled. Was it a fox, or was he just looking at it wrong? He gazed at it with a growing sense of puzzlement, and decided it would be better to read the letter before he wracked his brains trying to understand what exactly the origami in the box was supposed to be.

His eyes skimmed over the long note – had she written him an essay? He couldn't fathom how she could think of so much to put in a birthday note, and started at the top:

'_Yo. Oh god, let me start over. That was the LAMEST thing ever. Why didn't I just erase it? Neji, tell me why I didn't just erase it. And why am I continuing to write about nothing? Okay, forget any of this is here. I need a pen.'_

That part was crossed out with a big blue X. Neji could feel the expression of baffled amusement on his face, and promptly forced himself to lower his eyebrows. He had _the _strangest friends… Or maybe Tenten had had a bit too much to drink when she wrote this? Or both, that was possible as well. He continued to read:

'_Dear Neji,_

_Well, first of all, I'll start of by telling you I'm really bad with these kinds of things. You know, birthday cards and stuff like that. But I'll try to make this work. And ignore that up there.'_

She had drawn an arrow up to the crossed out part of the note.

'_So yeah, happy birthday. I think that last time I wrote you a card for your birthday was when we were sixteen. Which, when you think about it, really isn't THAT long ago. That's only five cards I haven't gotten you. Wait, no, ignore that. Maybe I shouldn't have switched to pen…_

_Ahem. Anyway. I'm sure you're wondering what the present part of this present is. (Seriously, I know you're looking at it with that 'What the hell is this?' look of yours. I know). Remember when I used to help out at that daycare during my free time, and I dragged you there with me that one time? You were totally freaking out ("Tenten, I don't handle children well. I'm not afraid, I just…don't handle children well) and you were as tense as a plank of wood the whole time, just standing in the corner like a total lurk. _

_Well, remember that one little girl? The one who called you Fox-Man? She said that it was because her favorite story book had a fox with white eyes in it, and that since your eyes looked like the fox's, you just HAD to be Fox-Man. I don't think you liked that very much, but she absolutely adored you. Every time you came (I dragged you along) she would yell "Fox-Man's here, Fox-Man's here!" and you would scowl and she would smile and you would scowl some more and go stand in your corner and she would laugh and latch onto your leg. _

_I don't really know why I decided to make you an origami fox for your birthday, except that that memory came to mind when I was trying to figure out what to get you, and this just kinda happened. I guess I just wanted to give you something of a memory from the "good old days." I really do miss those days. I barely ever see Lee any more, or you. I miss you guys…'_

He didn't miss the twinge of sadness she had sewn into the end of the paragraph, and it made him feel a bit guilty. They were all so busy now – Tenten, Lee, and himself – that they barely had any time for each other, and he knew that Tenten had depended on them so much in the past. They were her support, her brothers, and now Neji was sure that she felt like their family was being pulled apart. He had seen the gratitude in her eyes when he had gone to see her on her birthday, but he had also seen a deep-set fatigue and loneliness. And he had seen it even clearer earlier this morning.

He made up his mind to find her the next day to thank her, and then he would challenge her to a spar. It was the least he could do.

'_ANYWAY, that's the explanation behind the fox thing. There's one more thing at the very bottom of the box, under the squishy white stuff. I couldn't resist. (Look at it now).'_

Neji followed the directions and gently lifted the origami fox out of the box and placed it on the desk. It was really well done, he noted, and realized with another pang of guilt that he had never taught her how to fold origami like he said he would. The 'white stuff' was a layer of cotton cut into a square, and beneath it was another piece of paper, folded in half and then in half again.

He took it out and unfolded it, and was greeted by the sight of a very disproportional picture of what he assumed was him (judging by the sloppily written caption of 'FOX MAN' written in all capitals underneath). He looked back at Tenten's letter:

'_She gave that to me one of the times you weren't there. She told me to give it to you, and I put it in a "safe place" in my room, and then lost it before I could give it to you. You know how that goes…right? So not my fault. Kinda. Safe places never work! You always just lose whatever you put there, and then you completely forget where the safe place is in the first place. But yeah, I found that a while ago, and it's been sitting on my desk for a while now, and I just HAD to give it to you. It's so adorable!_

_So there you go, now you know that these presents aren't as random as they seem. And maybe if I find some time…sometime…I'll get you something a bit more…present-ish. But don't count on it (please don't). So yeah, wishing you a happy birthday and all that. Save me a slice of cake! (You do eat cake on your birthday, right?) Don't lose the gifts, and, well, have a great birthday, Neji. _

_Lots of love,_

_Tenten'_

He finished the letter and realized that he was smiling. He knew, without a doubt, that that was the best present he had ever received, and was instantly filled with a profound amount of gratitude. He was so thankful that Tenten was his friend, and that they had been able to mostly hold their relationship together through the busy years. She understood him, and sometimes surprised him by knowing exactly what he needed or wanted before even he knew.

She had given him a memory, one that he had forgotten about, and that was precious. And it was something that nobody else could get him or buy him with money. When he went to bed that night he was content, and he didn't find himself thinking a million different things like he usually did. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep quickly, never having noticed that he had missed the postscript scribbled quickly onto the back of Tenten's letter.


End file.
